# death

> English word · Noun · IPA /dɛθ/ · frequency rank #385

## Definitions
1. The cessation of life and all associated processes; the end of an organism's existence as an entity independent from its environment and its return to an inert, nonliving state.
2. The cessation of life and all associated processes; the end of an organism's existence as an entity independent from its environment and its return to an inert, nonliving state.
3. The personification of death as a (usually male) hooded figure with a scythe; the Grim Reaper.
4. The collapse or end of something.
5. The collapse or end of something.
6. Spiritual lifelessness.

## Etymology
From Middle English deeth, from Old English dēaþ, from Proto-West Germanic *dauþu, from Proto-Germanic *dauþuz, from Proto-Indo-European *dʰówtus. More at die.
Cognates
Cognate with Scots daeth, daith, death, deeth, deith (“death”), North Frisian Duar, duas, düüs (“death”), Saterland Frisian Dood (“death”), West Frisian dea (“death”), Dutch dood (“death”), German Tod, Todt (“death”), Limburgish doead (“death”), Luxembourgish Doud (“death”), Yiddish טויט (toyt, “death”), Danish, Norwegian Bokmål død (“death”), Faroese deyði (“death”), Icelandic dauði (“death”), Norwegian Nynorsk daude, død (“death”), Swedish död (“death”), Gothic 𐌳𐌰𐌿𐌸𐌿𐍃 (dauþus, “death”).

## Easily confused with
- **debt** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/death-vs-debt)
- **dent** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/death-vs-dent)
- **doth** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/death-vs-doth)
- **deft** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/death-vs-deft)
- **depth** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/death-vs-depth)
- **delta** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/death-vs-delta)
- **debts** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/death-vs-debts)
- **deity** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/death-vs-deity)
- **dents** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/death-vs-dents)
- **debate** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/death-vs-debate)
- **deaths** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/death-vs-deaths)
- **depths** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/death-vs-depths)
- **detach** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/death-vs-detach)
- **deathly** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/death-vs-deathly)
- **dat** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/dat-vs-death)
- **DEA** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/dea-vs-death)
- **dah** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/dah-vs-death)
- **data** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/data-vs-death)
- **deal** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/deal-vs-death)
- **date** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/date-vs-death)

## Common misspellings (7)
`daeth`, `ddeath`, `deaht`, `deathh`, `deatth`, `detah`, `edath`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/death